Have you ever wondered about some animals that we know may not exist anymore in the years to come? There are so many endangered animals because of humans. I’ll give a few examples: rhinos, elephants and even gorillas. Elephants are dying because humans kill them for their ivory. Rhinos are being killed because of their horns. Gorillas are dying because of loss of habitats due to mining, agriculture and logging.

Amur Leopard 

Let’s start with the most endangered animal. Have you ever heard of Amur leopards? There are an estimated 84 Amur leopards in their natural habitat. Now your question might be: Why or how is it possible? Well, the main reason why they are endangered is because of habitat loss and fragmentation but also illegal poaching for their beautiful spotted fur and for their body parts. One of the reasons is not having enough food because humans go hunting a lot and the food supply gets limited for these animals.

Rhino

Believe it or not but rhinos are the most poached animals on this planet. ‘’Why?’’ Illegal poaching of their horns is the most significant threat to rhinos.There is also slow reproduction rate – female rhinos give birth to one calf every few years so the species can’t recover quickly from poaching. Their natural habitat shrinks so they get into conflicts with humans especially with farmers by damaging crops. As a result, it makes it harder for rhinos to find food, establish territories and roam around freely. 

Cross River gorilla 

There are only around 200-300 adult Cross River gorillas left in the wild. Like many endangered animals, their decline is mostly due to poaching, habitat loss, disease and human conflict. Gorillas are also slow to recover as they have a low reproductive rate, with females only giving birth every four to six years. One female will breed three or four times in her lifetime.

Orangutan

The two kinds of orangutan – the Bornean and the Sumatran orangutan – have both experienced sharp declines in populations. A century ago there were probably more than 230,000 orangutans in total, but the Bornean orangutan is now estimated at about 104,700 based on updated geographic range and the Sumatran about 13,846. They are primarily threatened by habitat loss from human-caused deforestation for palm oil. 

Who helps these animals?

I’ve told you about why these animals are endangered and now you wonder who helps these animals? There are a lot of organizations trying to protect these animals and the biggest one is the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). This organization is dedicated to wildlife conservation and protecting endangered species. They work on various fronts, including habitat preservation, anti-poaching efforts, and wildlife monitoring.

How can YOU help?

Many people don’t know but they can also help the endangered animals as individuals. To give you an example, orangutans would probably thank you for simply refusing consumption of palm oil products. Did you notice the chocolate creams with a notification on the label “palm oil free”? How can you help the gorillas? Never buy gorillas or other animals as pets. It hurts wildlife populations. Also, avoid buying gorilla meat, called bushmeat. Stay away from the products made from wildlife parts, like ivory or animal skins – they drive illegal trade. You can also donate to help all the animals we mentioned.

Emely Rasmijn

Sources:

Earth: Endangered species day
WWF Panda: Save solutions gorillas
WWF: Species – Orangutan
WWF: Species amur – leopard